Vanessa Redgrave is set to join Christoph Waltz in his directorial debut “Georgetown,“ a crime drama which Cornerstone Films will introduce to international buyers at the Cannes Film Market next week. Redgrave plays Elsa Brecht, a wealthy socialite seduced and wed by a cunning social climber named Ulrich Mott (Waltz). On the morning of August 13, 2011, hours after an extravagant dinner hosted by Mott, Elsa was found dead and Mott immediately became suspect of the murder of his wife (who is nearly three decades his senior.)

This film inspired by the true story of AlbrechtMuth, who was convicted in 2011 for murdering his socialite wife in Washington DC. PulitzerPrize-winning author David Auburn wrote the screenplay, with Brett Ratner and David Gerson producing for RatPac Entertainment alongside Andrew Levitas of MetalworkPictures, which is also financing. Len Blavatnik of RatPac will serve as executive producer.

“Christoph is one of the most acclaimed actors of our generation, and I was greatly inspired by his vision in bringing David Auburn’s phenomenal script to the big screen,” said Ratner. “I really believe in Christoph as a filmmaker and I am thrilled to be producing his directorial feature debut.”

Redgrave won best actress for her leading role in “Julia.“ Waltz won back-to-back Oscars’ for best supporting actor in “Inglorious Bastards” and “Django Unchained.” Cornerstone Films will oversee international sales and distribution and will commence sales in Cannes, whereas ICM will handle US sales. No release date has been announced for “Georgetown.”